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Sirach Chapter 5
We must not presume of our wealth or strength: nor of the mercy of God, to go on in sin: we must be steadfast in virtue and truth.
English (Douay-Rheims)
1 Set not thy heart upon unjust possessions, and say not: I have enough to live on: for it shall be of no service in the time of vengeance and darkness.
2 Follow not in thy strength the desires of thy heart:
3 And say not: How mighty am I? and who shall bring me under for my deeds? for God will surely take revenge.
4 Say not: I have sinned, and what harm hath befallen me? for the most High is a patient rewarder.
5 Be not without fear about sin forgiven, and add not sin upon sin:
6 And say not: The mercy of the Lord is great, he will have mercy on the multitude of my sins.
7 For mercy and wrath quickly come from him, and his wrath looketh upon sinners.
8 Delay not to be converted to the Lord, and defer it not from day to day.
9 For his wrath shall come on a sudden, and in the time of vengeance he will destroy thee.
10 Be not anxious for goods unjustly gotten: for they shall not profit thee in the day of calamity and revenge.
11 Winnow not with every wind, and go not into every way: for so is every sinner proved by a double tongue.
12 Be steadfast in the way of the Lord, and in the truth of thy judgment, and in knowledge, and let the word of peace and justice keep with thee.
13 Be meek to hear the word, that thou mayst understand: and return a true answer with wisdom.
14 If thou have understanding, answer thy neighbour: but if not, let thy hand be upon thy mouth, lest thou be surprised in an unskilful word, and be confounded.
15 Honour and glory is in the word of the wise, but the tongue of the fool is his ruin.
16 Be not called a whisperer, and be not taken in thy tongue, and confounded.
17 For confusion and repentance is upon a thief, and an evil mark of disgrace upon the double tongued, but to the whisperer hatred, and enmity, and reproach.
18 Justify alike the small and the great.
Old Testament first published 1609 by the English College at Douay
New Testament first published 1582 by the English College at Rheims
Revised and Annotated 1749 by Bishop Richard Challoner
Imprimatur. +James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, September 1, 1899
Latin (Clementine Vulgate)
1 Noli attendere ad possessiones iniquas,
et ne dixeris: Est mihi sufficiens vita:
nihil enim proderit in tempore vindictæ et obductionis.
2 Ne sequaris in fortitudine tua concupiscentiam cordis tui,
3 et ne dixeris: Quomodo potui?
aut, Quis me subjiciet propter facta mea?
Deus enim vindicans vindicabit.
4 Ne dixeris: Peccavi: et quid mihi accidit triste?
Altissimus enim est patiens redditor.
5 De propitiatio peccato noli esse sine metu,
neque adjicias peccatum super peccatum.
6 Et ne dicas: Miseratio Domini magna est,
multitudinis peccatorum meorum miserebitur:
7 misericordia enim et ira ab illo cito proximant,
et in peccatores respicit ira illius.
8 Non tardes converti ad Dominum,
et ne differas de die in diem:
9 subito enim veniet ira illius,
et in tempore vindictæ disperdet te.
10 Noli anxius esse in divitiis injustis:
non enim proderunt tibi in die obductionis et vindictæ.
11 Non ventiles te in omnem ventum,
et non eas in omnem viam:
sic enim omnis peccator probatur in duplici lingua.
12 Esto firmus in via Domini,
et in veritate sensus tui et scientia:
et prosequatur te verbum pacis et justitiæ.
13 Esto mansuetus ad audiendum verbum, ut intelligas,
et cum sapientia proferas responsum verum.
14 Si est tibi intellectus, responde proximo:
sin autem, sit manus tua super os tuum,
ne capiaris in verbo indisciplinato, et confundaris.
15 Honor et gloria in sermone sensati:
lingua vero imprudentis subversio est ipsius.
16 Non appelleris susurro,
et lingua tua ne capiaris et confundaris:
17 super furem enim est confusio et pœnitentia,
et denotatio pessima super bilinguem:
susurratori autem odium, et inimicitia, et contumelia.
18 Justifica pusillum
et magnum similiter.
Transcribed as part of the Clementine Vulgate Project
Please notify the original transcriber (little.mouth@soon.com) of any errors in this Latin edition